I will be featured artist at Parklane Gallery in March with a large display of my photography in the front of the gallery. The exhibit titled “Colors of Nature” will include both landscapes and closeup detail shots. I have traveled near and far in my quest to capture the amazing colors, patterns and beauty of the natural world. All of the images in this exhibit will be photographs printed on aluminum. If you have not seen metal prints before, you will be amazed at their luminosity, clarity and almost 3 D appearance. You can see a preview of some of the images in the exhibit attached below. I hope you can join me for the opening reception on March 11, 5-8 PM.

It has become a tradition for many photographers to publish their favorite photos of the year. I embrace this tradition because it helps me review my photography for the year and also is a good way to introduce new images to my followers. I have included some background information for each image below as well as why it was chosen. These images are published in chronological order so the order in which they are published is not any indication of my preference for any particular image. I hope you enjoy viewing them as much as I enjoyed shooting them!

The first trip I took in 2015 was to Yellowstone in February. I was traveling with my good friend Gary Hamburgh and we had a great trip. At lower elevations, there was not much snow, but it was a winter wonderland in the higher areas. This first image is perhaps the most iconic spot in the whole park, Lower Yellowstone Falls.

Lower Yellowstone Falls, Yellowstone NP, WY

While I never pass up the opportunity to shoot impressive landscapes, I also like to use different techniques to produce impressionistic images. While we were in Yellowstone, we stopped at a forest that had been burned in a forest fire. The burned trunks were very black and stood out against the white snow. So I decided to use intentional camera movement. For this image I used a long shutter speed and moved the camera up while the shutter was open. This produced the abstract feeling of the image below.

Winter Forest Abstract, Yellowstone NP, WY

I also like to shoot close up shots of details which can also produce an abstract feeling. I was walking along the boardwalk near Old Faithful which has many hot springs and geysers where I found this scene. This image is frozen geothermal runoff from the nearby geothermal features. I like the colors and lines of this composition which I call Earth Tones.

Earth Tones, Yellowstone NP, WY

We took a photo tour while we were in Yellowstone on one of their snow coaches. Our guide was familiar with the wildlife and in communication with some other tour leaders. One of the other tour leaders said that they spotted a bobcat near the Madison River and when we got there we found the bobcat stalking a muskrat. I decided to use a pan blur to capture the bobcat as it leaped into the river. This technique kept the bobcat relatively sharp, but blured the background as the camera moved with the bobcat. I like the sense of motion in this image.

Leaping Bobcat, Yellowstone NP, WY

In February we visited Mexico and for the first time Oaxaca which is known for its indigenous culture. One evening we attended a demonstration of Mexican folk dancing at a local hotel. I was fascinated by the colorful costumes and energetic dancing so I decided to use motion blur. For this shot I used a long shutter speed and mounted my camera on a sturdy tripod. This technique caused the dancers to blur while keeping some parts of the image sharp. I like the sense of motion and vibrant colors in this image.

Mexican Folk Dance, Oaxaca, Mexico

In March we visited Kauai for the first time in many years. One morning I got up early and hiked out to Mokolea Point with a photographer friend in the dark to shoot the dawn light. I was very pleased to find the crescent moon low in the horizon just as the dawn sky was beginning to light up. I like the simplicity of this image with the crescent moon above the ocean and this ancient lava field.

Kauai Moonset, Kauai, HI

In late May we traveled to Portugal for the first time. We started in Lisbon and slowly worked our way up to Porto and the Douro Valley. When we were in Porto I found a great spot to shoot the Douro River at sunset. I like the illuminated buildings of the waterfront against the beautiful sunset sky in this image.

Douro River Sunset, Porto, Portugal

After Porto we spent several days in the Douro Valley. This area has been growing wine grapes since Roman times and the hillsides have that well tended look which comes from centuries of cultivation. It is the custom of the Portuguese to grow olive trees mixed between the vineyards which makes for some pleasing compositions. This shot is a typical scene of the Douro Valley.

Hillside Vineyards, Douro Valley, Portugal

After touring Portugal we traveled up to Spain and visited Santiago de Compostela for the first time. Because it is home to St. John’s grave, this town became famous as the destination of many pilgrims from all over Europe. Since it was such an important town for the Catholics, they built many monuments. The image below is in a former monastery which is now used as the Museum of the Galician People. I had never seen a triple spiral staircase before and I thought it looked best looking up towards the ceiling. Looking up is often an effective way to create an unusual point of view.

Triple Spiral Staircase, Santiago de Compostela, Spain

In late September we visited Colorado to see the autumn color. Colorado has the best aspen trees of anywhere I have been and we were lucky to catch the autumn color near its peak. I found these aspen trees growing just outside the town of Aspen. I like these very tall trees with very white trunks and the yellow foliage in the background.

Aspen Trunks near Aspen, CO

When I was driving one of the back roads of Gunnison NF, I came across this aspen grove. The trees in the foreground had already lost most of their leaves so the early morning sun created very dramatic shadows on the road while the trees in the background still had most of their autumn color. I like this combination of dramatic shadows in the foreground with yellow foliage and blue sky in the background.

Autumn Shadows, Gunnison NF, CO

On my last day in Colorado, it was rainy. It was not pouring, but a soft, gentle rain. I knew the conditions were not good for landscapes so I started looking for closeup shots. There were many water drops on the fallen leaves, but the way they had fallen was not particularly attractive. So I started moving the leaves I liked to a different location. It was very difficult to move the leaves without loosing the water drops and I was not always successful. But I was able to assemble a fairly large number of leaves with the water drops in tact and this image is the result of my efforts. I like the different colors in the image ranging from red to yellow and of course the water drops make it eye-catching.

It has become a tradition for many photographers to publish their favorite photos of the year. I embrace this tradition because it helps me review my photography for the year and also is a good way to introduce new images to my followers. I have included some background information for each image below as well as why it was chosen. These images are published in chronological order so the order in which they are published is not any indication of my preference for any particular image. I hope you enjoy viewing them as much as I enjoyed shooting them!

The first trip I took in 2014 was to Hawaii in February. We visited Molokai and Oahu and this was my favorite shot. It was such a beautiful sight to see the sun rising between these 2 islets on Lanikai Beach on Oahu.

Lainikai Beach Sunrise, Oahu, HI

In March we visited Mexico and my favorite place was Guanajuato. Whenever I am traveling I try to seek out unique architecture and make some images. This is Teatro Juarez, Guanajuato’s elegant old opera house. The opulent interior reflects the wealth which came from the nearby silver mines which at one time produced more than 70 percent of the world’s silver. Such a beautiful building!

Teatro Juarez, Guanajuato, MX

In April I flew into LA to attend a friend’s wedding and afterwards I drove up the coast to Big Sur. It was such a wonderful trip driving near the ocean. Just south of Big Sur I found these poppies blooming near the side of the road. It was such a beautiful sight with the orange poppies in the foreground and the deep blue ocean in the background. Springtime on California’s central coast was fantastic!

California Poppies near Big Sur, CA

This is another image from my trip to California in April. I was driving up to Big Sur in the early AM and it was so foggy I could hardly see anything. So I decided to drive up to Paso Robles to see what I could find there. When I was able to get above the fog I found this hillside with wild mustard in full bloom. It was such a beautiful sight with the rolling hills leading your eye to the foggy coast and a pink dawn sky. I like the subtle colors in this image.

Mustard Hill Dawn, near Paso Robles, CA

In May I visited Slovenia for the first time. I highly recommend this destination for anyone who enjoys traveling in Europe. The second stop on my trip to Slovenia was Lake Bled
which has a small island with a medieval church in the middle of this beautiful alpine lake .It is such a picturesque spot and almost looks like a fairytale. I got up early to catch the dawn light and was lucky to have these beautiful clouds reflected in the still waters of the lake. What a wonderful way to start the day!

Lake Bled Dawn, Bled, Slovenia

In late May and early June, I toured Croatia after my trip to Slovenia. We ended our trip in Dubrovnik, the Pearl of the Adriatic, which did not fail to live up to its nickname. Dubrovnik is built on a peninsula that juts out into the Adriatic Sea. I wanted to make an image showing the city surrounded by the sea so I found a spot on a nearby hill with a great view and waited for the sun to go down. This is my favorite composition taken that evening. It was such a beautiful sight to see the city lights come on with the sunset sky in the background.

Dubrovnik Sunset, Dubrovnik, Croatia

In October, I visited Italy and my first stop was Rome. I was staying at a small hotel near St. Peter’s Basilica so it was just a short walk to the Tiber River. This is Ponte Vittorio Emanuele and the dome in the background is St. Peter’s. I like the deep blue twilight sky and the reflections in this image. Rome is such a beautiful city!

Twilight Tiber River, Rome, IT

On my last day in Rome I got up early and went to Piazza Navona before sunrise. I like to shoot illuminated buildings during the blue hour and this was my favorite shot that morning. In the middle of the piazza is the Four Rivers Fountain which was designed by Bernini. Above the fountain is an Egyptian obelisk which was first brought to Rome when Egypt was a province of the Roman Empire. This square was first built as a racetrack during the reign of Emperor Domitian. I like seeing the piazza without any people which would be impossible during daylight hours.

Piazza Navona Dawn, Rome, IT

On my trip to Italy, we spent one night in Florence and I got up early to shoot the cathedral at dawn. The area around this beautiful old building is quite congested so I decided to shoot it from one corner. I like this beautiful illuminated building against the deep blue color of the sky in this shot.

Duomo Dawn, Florence, IT

Over the past several years I have visited Italy many times, but I had not been to Cinque Terre so this year I decided to go there. Cinque Terre has many hiking trails which provide fantastic views of the towns. This is a view of Vernazza we found while we were hiking on one of these trails. I am always on the lookout for good view points looking down on famous spots so from that point of view Cinque Terre is a great place to photograph.

Vernazza, Cinque Terre, IT

This is another shot of Vernazza. I got up early and walked out to a vantage point I had scouted out the previous day to shoot the town at dawn. I like the illuminated buildings against this colorful dawn sky. Cinque Terre is so photogenic. Now I understand why it is so popular with photographers.

Vernazza Dawn, Cinque Terre, IT

When we had some unusually clear weather in November I made a brief trip down to Portland, OR to shoot some cityscapes. While I have visited Portland before I had not shot the skyline from the opposite side of the Willamette River. I found a great location near OMSI where I made this image. Luckily it was a calm evening and the reflections of the city lights in the river were fantastic. It was such a beautiful sight to see so many different colors reflected on the water’s surface!

The Trinity Parish Church Gallery on Pill Hill in Seattle is hosting an exhibit of my photography I will be exhibiting some new images from Seattle and my travels to Europe, Japan, and New Zealand as well as displaying older images. The new images will be displayed as metal prints. If you have not seen photographs printed on aluminum, you will be amazed at their luminescence. The gallery is open to the public every Sunday after church services and on week days by appointment.

Parliament Through the Arches

This exhibit will be on display April 6 – May 17. The gallery is open every Sunday after church service and by appointment. The Opening Reception will be Sunday April 6, 12 Noon – 2PM. Trinity Parish Church is located at 609 8th Ave., Seattle, WA . For viewing appointments, please contact Sheila Comerford, tel. (206) 448-8630, email – sheilapcomerford@gmail.com

2013 was a busy year with many interesting trips to such a variety of different locales. So it was a very difficult task to decide on only 10 favorite images. I feel truly blessed that I am able to travel widely to pursue my passion for photography. Hopefully that passion will be evident in the images below. Some of the highlights of the year were trips to New Zealand, the Canadian Rockies, Central Europe and Quebec, all of which are represented in the images below with some local shots from Seattle thrown in as well.

I also started to sell photographs printed on aluminumin in 2013 which have proven to be quite popular. Metal prints have great luminosity and incredible detail and seem to fit my imagery well. Of course it goes without saying that all of the images below are available for purchase as metal prints. I plan to continue selling prints of my work at local galleries and art fairs in 2014.

Opinions vary widely for artwork so I would be very interested to hear what you think about my images. If you have a favorite, please do include that in any comments you write below. I decided to publish these images in chronological order by the time they were taken throughout the year so the order does not imply any preference on my part for individual images.

Once again it is that time of year to look back and review all the images I shot over the year. One thing that stands out is my attraction to architecture this year. While I still shoot many nature images and some of these are included this year, the vast majority of my favorite images of 2012 include some architectural element. I continue to be fascinated by human culture and most of these cultural shots include some element of architecture.

Another trend which was also true last year is that most of my favorite images in 2012 were processed as HDR’s. This is partly related to my focus on architecture. HDR’s are often the best way to bring out all the detail in architectural shots especially when shooting early or late in the day. But recently I also use HDR’s for many nature shots as well. Shooting HDR’s allows me to get shots that just would not be possible using only one exposure. I always strive to process HDR’s so they look natural, and I consider it a great compliment if the viewer does not realize that an image was processed as an HDR. Of course there are some situations when one exposure is better than an HDR and in some cases I shoot 3 exposures, but in the end only process one of them.

The images below are in cronological order throughout the year. It is always difficult for me to choose my favorites so I would be very interested to know what your favorites are. Any comments about specific images or this set of images would be highly appreciated.

During the month of March, 2011, all purchases of Rob Tilley photographic prints are 20 % OFF our everday affordable prices. If you are thinking about redecorating your walls with some new artwork, this is a great opportunity to save money.

You can choose any of the images in the image galleries on our website. Within the greater Seattle area delivery is free. Shipping &; handling for unframed prints to anywhere in the US is only $10.00. We also offer free home consultaions. If you see any images you are interested in we can arrange to meet you at your home so you can see if any images fit with your decor. In additon to our standard framing options, we also offer custom framing at very competitive pricing. If you are considering to purchase prints, please contact us by email or phone quoting the image name, image number and size of the images you are interested in. Satisfaction guaranteed, if you are not completely satisfied with your purchase, we will refund 100% of the purchase price.